Is addiction really such a bad thing? Dark chocolate for weight loss, red wine in moderation for the heart, brain puzzles to stave off dementia, writing memes to keep the creative juices flowing, ezine rejections for staying humble(poor) and the A-Z for an excuse to bring the old Olympus out. ;)

p.s. I am rejoining the A-Z but only with my 'ready to post' pictures on my photo blog, well, so far have 20 of them.

Not been well for a while, the blood test revealed a chest infection plus severe anaemia....hopefully the infection will turn around in a week or two but the iron deficiency will take longer to rectify..I should be able to get to regular blogging soon, don't miss me too much. ;D

Tomorrow happens to be India's republic day....makes me wonder....where is a republic headed when it panders to a small group of religious fundamentalists and prevents an eminent Indian origin author from participating in a literary festival (having banned his book Satanic Verses 20 years ago)??

Nokia tag line says "We connect people" but the ones who contacted me the most were Tele marketeers...The TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority Of India ) now says, 100 sms/texts per Sim card is enough for a day from October onwards....which means my cellular service provider can't connect to me even for billing.

This is so reminiscent of my writing journey this year. True the quill had gathered dust for years, the words lost in yellowing journals. Patience is the key....but insecurity strikes a blow to the tender bruised ego with every rejection...On one hand writers say you need publishing credits to launch your short story collection....on the other hand even free e zines feel my work would stain their esteemed cyber pages. And in the second most populated country in the world; where every other educated person is a closet writer, maybe my work is not good enough. This toon below expresses my fears adequately.

And yet, every time I hear that a fellow blogger has broken the glass ceiling of the publishing world, I am gladdened and feel hopeful. One such blogger Gail M Baugneit has published her Pepper Bibeau mystery,"FOR EVERY ACTION There Are Consequences" in both trade and e book format. Do drop in at her blog. You may even win the Smashwords coupon for the remaining 3 free copies of the novel.

Since, a lot of people have blogged about her Novelette launched, I felt it would seem like old news. M. Pax a writer of short stories and novelettes in science fiction (one of my favourite genre) has launched her E book , a Space opera "Semper Audacia". It is available at Amazon and also at Smashwords for .99 cents. Check out her free short stories, especially "Small Graces".the links available on her blog M Pax Author .

When life drops you a mango or two, Make a milkshake, and that's not quite your style Try a mango souffle....better still use the seeds to grow a tree, your grandchildren may end up saving their precious money and send you off, into the beyond, in style.

On to serious stuff (I am perfectly healthy, no worries there)....just pruning my blog tree list...realised that I have many who have abandoned their camps long ago, far too many poets to my liking, very few writers, book reviewers and movie/music review blogs. Those who find themselves at the short end of the chopping knife will hardly notice, they don't venture into the "dream" camp anyways. Serious writers will help me realise how my own pathetic writing is good enough for the E publishing world...given that I plan to come out with my ebook collections of short/flash fiction and poetry soon (six months, soon enough?). That scary task is not to appease the writer in me (maybe a wee bit) but for my mom and brother who have been my pillars of strength for longer than I can remember...I mean 37 is a long time isn't it to have your memories as pristine and crystal clear as they show in the movies? At the very least, my nephews and nieces can say their aunt was a published author even if nobody outside the family downloaded her .99 cents books (just hyping up myself for the eventual failure that is the story of my life.) Centusians who have braved all the crappy words above, succour is in sight because my dialogues are based on this very future scenario. Happy reading. ;)

“Can I take your order, m’am?”

“Will have three of these, four tikka platters and chocolate brownies. Later, when the others have arrived.” “A coffee latte now, thank you”

…….

“Long time, no see” "Have been really busy."

“Reks, you haven't changed a bit since I last you” “where is this new friend you raved about, that ex neighbour?”

“Caught in traffic, she will be here soon.”

“I am famished.”“Shouldn’t we wait?”

“Go ahead, she won’t mind.”

…….

“So what’s this news?”

“You are having an affair!!”

“Affairs are for the married remember”

“You are marrying again?”

“Bah!!” "Once bitten twice shy, should listen to old songs more often!!" “ Much better deal , I sold my first 100 books.”

“Finally, you did it!!”

“I told you, you were good” “Are you seriously ordering another martini?”“Hold your horses, the first outside sale so far, 99 were bought by family and you, my awesome friends!!!”

*Tikka - a North Indian delicacy eaten as dry starters or gravies with Indian breads

If everyone speaks at the same time, who will listen to what's being said??

By extension if all of us had the same level of intelligence, talent, skills sets or even plain hobbies, what then??If all were expert painters, who will appreciates the fine nuances and the brush strokes....If all were talented singers or musicians, who would be there to close their eyes, tap their feet, drum fingers along with the beats and get divinely involved in the song and melody....If each of us sat to write books, who will read them and let our pen strokes stoke their imagination and take them to new worlds....If each one were expert chefs and bakers, who would sample the tasty morsels, loosen their belts and sigh in gastronomic delights....If everyone was an inventor, who would laugh at first and then one by one use our creations and praise our ingenuity....And so on....if all of us were well accomplished, masters of all the sciences and arts, who would be left to listen, question, appreciate, approve, enjoy, praise, utilise......It is the ordinary one with limited talent, often few skills, average intelligence who sits back and watches the various masters at work..Even a Guru is incomplete without disciples to preach....Take heart those among us who can't create , spin words, wield a brush or a ladle.....it is You, the audience that makes the accomplishments worthwhile.....For, every performer needs not empty seats but at least one pair of hands that clap.....

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I do a whole lot of things but the thing I do best is write - be it fact, fiction or research based work. The answer isn't simply because I have a good command over the language or I am able to string long sentences that make sense. Writing makes me happy and I enjoy creating a worthy and useful output.